Tijs Laenen
Biographic Data
| ID | 4159646 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Tijs Laenen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Tijs |
| FAMILY NAME | Laenen |
| SIGNATURE | LAENEN T |
| AFFILIATIONS | KU Leuven |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4705-196X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 21 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 127 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 20 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 1 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2018 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
What's not to loathe? A qualitative study of the factors influencing Belgian trade unions’ positioning toward a universal basic income
This article focuses on the positioning of Belgian trade unions (TUs) toward a universal basic income (UBI). While there is some previous empirical work suggesting that TUs are unlikely to support this potential welfare reform because of ideological and strategic motives, we still lack a broader understanding of the factors influencing unions’ hostility toward a UBI. This study aims to fill this gap by adopting a multifactor approach that conside…
Settlement deservingness perceptions of climate change, economic, and political migrant groups across partisan lines
International migration is a prevailing issue of our times. With opponents of multicultural societies becoming more vocal across Europe, it is pivotal to strengthen our knowledge of how migrants are popularly perceived in receiving countries. Prior research suggests that there is remarkable agreement within different countries as to which types of migrants are seen as deserving of settlement, cutting across deep-rooted partisan divides. Building …
What makes social policy programs (un)popular? Disentangling the causal impact of policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery
Social policy scholars often argue that policy programs are more popular when they are universally accessible, targeted at deserving social risk groups, or provided in kind rather than in cash. I argue, however, that most existing evidence is inconclusive because it typically conflates the respective factors of programs’ policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery. Using data from a factorial vignette experiment in Belgium and th…
It's the middle that matters? Income group coalitions in support of redistributive welfare reform
Many well‐established theories argue that welfare state policies create, and are created by, support coalitions between different income groups. Empirically, however, relatively little attention has been paid to the coalitions forged by the group that matters most according to these theories: middle‐income earners. To address that gap, this article investigates the income differences underlying popular support for two radically opposing redistrib…
Policy feedback and income targeting in the welfare state
In light of ongoing debates about income targeting in the welfare state, this article explores how the design and outcomes of income targeting policies are related to popular targeting preferences. Based on the unique combination of fine-grained opinion and policy indicators in a multilevel analysis, the results show that targeting preferences are indeed empirically related to targeting policies. However, whether these preferences are affected mo…
The Popularity of Basic Income
A wave of support? A natural experiment on how the Covid-19 pandemic affected the popularity of a basic income
Although a basic income (BI) has already been widely debated, the COVID-19 crisis further intensified the discussion about this periodic cash payment that is unconditionally delivered to all. However, it remains unclear whether the crisis spurred a wave of public support for its introduction. To investigate this, we aim to answer two research questions: (1) How did support for a BI evolve in reaction to the COVID-19 crisis? and (2) To what extent…
Popularity of Basic Income
The multidimensionality of public support for basic income
sponsorship: This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 101023631. The research is also supported by the Research Foundation Flanders [grant number 11H2619N]. (European Union|101023631, Research Foundation Flanders|11H2619N, Marie Curie Actions (MSCA)|101023631
Recent advances in understanding welfare attitudes in Europe
Welfare attitudes are important for the social legitimacy of social policy. In European comparative social policy research, the scientific study of welfare attitudes is a well-settled discipline. In this chapter we identify six major advancements in attitudinal social policy research: (a) the multi-dimensionality of welfare attitudes; the role of contextual factors both as (b) contexts influencing welfare attitudes and as (c) factors in so-called…
Welfare state dissatisfaction and support for major welfare reform
This research note investigates how people combine their views on two radically opposing welfare reforms: a universal basic income and a fully means‐tested welfare state. Using data from the 2016–2017 European Social Survey, we found that support for transformative welfare reform is rooted in perceptions of the performance of the current system. The preferred direction of reform, however, strongly depends on the specific aspects of the welfare st…
Are universal welfare policies really more popular than selective ones? A critical discussion of empirical research
Purpose In the social policy literature, it is often assumed that universal policies are more popular than selective ones among the public, because they supposedly generate broader self-interested coalitions and are considered morally superior. The present article revisits and challenges this assumption. Design/methodology/approach The article critically reviews the existing empirical literature on public support for universal and means-tested we…
Two decades after Korpi and Palme’s “paradox of redistribution
Over two decades ago, Korpi and Palme (1998) published one of the most influential papers in the history of social policy discipline, in which they put forward a “paradox of redistribution”: the more countries target welfare resources exclusively at the poor, the less redistribution is actually achieved and the less income inequality and poverty are reduced. The current paper provides a state-of-the-art review of empirical research into that para…
Why deservingness theory needs qualitative research. Comparing focus group discussions on social welfare in three welfare regimes
Chapter 6 adopts a qualitative approach to the study of welfare deservingness to address two hitherto unanswered questions in deservingness literature: (1) Which deservingness criteria, if any, do people spontaneously apply when discussing matters of social welfare? and (2) What concrete meaning do abstract deservingness criteria have to people, and how do they apply them? Using focus group data gathered in Denmark, Germany and the UK, we show th…
Welfare State Legitimacy in Times of Crisis and Austerity
Welfare Deservingness and Welfare Policy
This important book builds a bridge between the literature on popular welfare deservingness and social welfare policies. It examines the relationship between the two, exploring the close correspondence between public opinion and public policy that has been present throughout the history of social welfare.
The social legitimacy of basic income
In this special issue, authors present and discuss the findings of a series of recent national and EU cross-national empirical studies on public support for basic income. As such, the special issue offers new and innovative insights on such support and its individual and contextual drivers. The articles employ heterogeneous data and methods and therefore, as a whole, navigate the multi-dimensional nature of (opinions on) basic income. Three of th…
An unconditional basic income? How Dutch citizens justify their opinions about a basic income and work conditionality
The article focuses on one of the core but controversial features of a universal basic income (UBI): its unconditionality. Using qualitative in-depth interviews collected in the Dutch municipality of Tilburg in 2018–2019, we examine the arguments underlying popular opinions about a UBI and work conditionality. The analysis suggests that these arguments can be interpreted from two theoretical perspectives. On the one hand, respondents make frequen…
Why deservingness theory needs qualitative research
This article argues that the ever-growing research field of welfare deservingness is in need of qualitative research. Using focus group data collected in Denmark, Germany, and the United Kingdom, we show that citizens discussing matters of social welfare make explicit reference not only to the deservingness criteria of control, reciprocity, and need but also to a number of context-related criteria extending beyond the deservingness framework (e.g…
Public support for the social rights and social obligations of the unemployed
In light of the ever‐growing shift towards activation in European welfare states, the present article examines the relationship between citizens’ welfare generosity (i.e., support for social rights) and welfare conditionality (i.e., support for social obligations) with regard to the unemployed. Using data from the 2014 Belgian National Elections Study, we found that generosity and conditionality appear to be two sides of the same coin. The two fa…
Do institutions matter? The interplay between income benefit design, popular perceptions, and the social legitimacy of targeted welfare
A recurring theme in welfare state research is that public support for social welfare is related to the institutional design of welfare policies. However, strong empirical evidence for the institutional embeddedness of welfare attitudes has been lacking to date, and the underlying theoretical mechanisms remain underexplored. This article diverges from the widespread macro-perspective of welfare regime theory, by shifting the focus of its analysis…
Why deservingness theory needs qualitative research
This article argues that the ever-growing research field of welfare deservingness is in need of qualitative research. Using focus group data collected in Denmark, Germany, and the United Kingdom, we show that citizens discussing matters of social welfare make explicit reference not only to the deservingness criteria of control, reciprocity, and need but also to a number of context-related criteria extending beyond the deservingness framework (e.g…
Do institutions matter? The interplay between income benefit design, popular perceptions, and the social legitimacy of targeted welfare
A recurring theme in welfare state research is that public support for social welfare is related to the institutional design of welfare policies. However, strong empirical evidence for the institutional embeddedness of welfare attitudes has been lacking to date, and the underlying theoretical mechanisms remain underexplored. This article diverges from the widespread macro-perspective of welfare regime theory, by shifting the focus of its analysis…
Two decades after Korpi and Palme’s “paradox of redistribution
Over two decades ago, Korpi and Palme (1998) published one of the most influential papers in the history of social policy discipline, in which they put forward a “paradox of redistribution”: the more countries target welfare resources exclusively at the poor, the less redistribution is actually achieved and the less income inequality and poverty are reduced. The current paper provides a state-of-the-art review of empirical research into that para…
An unconditional basic income? How Dutch citizens justify their opinions about a basic income and work conditionality
The article focuses on one of the core but controversial features of a universal basic income (UBI): its unconditionality. Using qualitative in-depth interviews collected in the Dutch municipality of Tilburg in 2018–2019, we examine the arguments underlying popular opinions about a UBI and work conditionality. The analysis suggests that these arguments can be interpreted from two theoretical perspectives. On the one hand, respondents make frequen…
The multidimensionality of public support for basic income
sponsorship: This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 101023631. The research is also supported by the Research Foundation Flanders [grant number 11H2619N]. (European Union|101023631, Research Foundation Flanders|11H2619N, Marie Curie Actions (MSCA)|101023631
Public support for the social rights and social obligations of the unemployed
In light of the ever‐growing shift towards activation in European welfare states, the present article examines the relationship between citizens’ welfare generosity (i.e., support for social rights) and welfare conditionality (i.e., support for social obligations) with regard to the unemployed. Using data from the 2014 Belgian National Elections Study, we found that generosity and conditionality appear to be two sides of the same coin. The two fa…
A wave of support? A natural experiment on how the Covid-19 pandemic affected the popularity of a basic income
Although a basic income (BI) has already been widely debated, the COVID-19 crisis further intensified the discussion about this periodic cash payment that is unconditionally delivered to all. However, it remains unclear whether the crisis spurred a wave of public support for its introduction. To investigate this, we aim to answer two research questions: (1) How did support for a BI evolve in reaction to the COVID-19 crisis? and (2) To what extent…
Welfare state dissatisfaction and support for major welfare reform
This research note investigates how people combine their views on two radically opposing welfare reforms: a universal basic income and a fully means‐tested welfare state. Using data from the 2016–2017 European Social Survey, we found that support for transformative welfare reform is rooted in perceptions of the performance of the current system. The preferred direction of reform, however, strongly depends on the specific aspects of the welfare st…
Are universal welfare policies really more popular than selective ones? A critical discussion of empirical research
Purpose In the social policy literature, it is often assumed that universal policies are more popular than selective ones among the public, because they supposedly generate broader self-interested coalitions and are considered morally superior. The present article revisits and challenges this assumption. Design/methodology/approach The article critically reviews the existing empirical literature on public support for universal and means-tested we…
The social legitimacy of basic income
In this special issue, authors present and discuss the findings of a series of recent national and EU cross-national empirical studies on public support for basic income. As such, the special issue offers new and innovative insights on such support and its individual and contextual drivers. The articles employ heterogeneous data and methods and therefore, as a whole, navigate the multi-dimensional nature of (opinions on) basic income. Three of th…
What makes social policy programs (un)popular? Disentangling the causal impact of policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery
Social policy scholars often argue that policy programs are more popular when they are universally accessible, targeted at deserving social risk groups, or provided in kind rather than in cash. I argue, however, that most existing evidence is inconclusive because it typically conflates the respective factors of programs’ policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery. Using data from a factorial vignette experiment in Belgium and th…
Policy feedback and income targeting in the welfare state
In light of ongoing debates about income targeting in the welfare state, this article explores how the design and outcomes of income targeting policies are related to popular targeting preferences. Based on the unique combination of fine-grained opinion and policy indicators in a multilevel analysis, the results show that targeting preferences are indeed empirically related to targeting policies. However, whether these preferences are affected mo…
Public support for the social rights and social obligations of the unemployed
In light of the ever‐growing shift towards activation in European welfare states, the present article examines the relationship between citizens’ welfare generosity (i.e., support for social rights) and welfare conditionality (i.e., support for social obligations) with regard to the unemployed. Using data from the 2014 Belgian National Elections Study, we found that generosity and conditionality appear to be two sides of the same coin. The two fa…
Do institutions matter? The interplay between income benefit design, popular perceptions, and the social legitimacy of targeted welfare
A recurring theme in welfare state research is that public support for social welfare is related to the institutional design of welfare policies. However, strong empirical evidence for the institutional embeddedness of welfare attitudes has been lacking to date, and the underlying theoretical mechanisms remain underexplored. This article diverges from the widespread macro-perspective of welfare regime theory, by shifting the focus of its analysis…
Why deservingness theory needs qualitative research
This article argues that the ever-growing research field of welfare deservingness is in need of qualitative research. Using focus group data collected in Denmark, Germany, and the United Kingdom, we show that citizens discussing matters of social welfare make explicit reference not only to the deservingness criteria of control, reciprocity, and need but also to a number of context-related criteria extending beyond the deservingness framework (e.g…
Why deservingness theory needs qualitative research. Comparing focus group discussions on social welfare in three welfare regimes
Chapter 6 adopts a qualitative approach to the study of welfare deservingness to address two hitherto unanswered questions in deservingness literature: (1) Which deservingness criteria, if any, do people spontaneously apply when discussing matters of social welfare? and (2) What concrete meaning do abstract deservingness criteria have to people, and how do they apply them? Using focus group data gathered in Denmark, Germany and the UK, we show th…
Welfare State Legitimacy in Times of Crisis and Austerity
Welfare Deservingness and Welfare Policy
This important book builds a bridge between the literature on popular welfare deservingness and social welfare policies. It examines the relationship between the two, exploring the close correspondence between public opinion and public policy that has been present throughout the history of social welfare.
The social legitimacy of basic income
In this special issue, authors present and discuss the findings of a series of recent national and EU cross-national empirical studies on public support for basic income. As such, the special issue offers new and innovative insights on such support and its individual and contextual drivers. The articles employ heterogeneous data and methods and therefore, as a whole, navigate the multi-dimensional nature of (opinions on) basic income. Three of th…
An unconditional basic income? How Dutch citizens justify their opinions about a basic income and work conditionality
The article focuses on one of the core but controversial features of a universal basic income (UBI): its unconditionality. Using qualitative in-depth interviews collected in the Dutch municipality of Tilburg in 2018–2019, we examine the arguments underlying popular opinions about a UBI and work conditionality. The analysis suggests that these arguments can be interpreted from two theoretical perspectives. On the one hand, respondents make frequen…
Are universal welfare policies really more popular than selective ones? A critical discussion of empirical research
Purpose In the social policy literature, it is often assumed that universal policies are more popular than selective ones among the public, because they supposedly generate broader self-interested coalitions and are considered morally superior. The present article revisits and challenges this assumption. Design/methodology/approach The article critically reviews the existing empirical literature on public support for universal and means-tested we…
Two decades after Korpi and Palme’s “paradox of redistribution
Over two decades ago, Korpi and Palme (1998) published one of the most influential papers in the history of social policy discipline, in which they put forward a “paradox of redistribution”: the more countries target welfare resources exclusively at the poor, the less redistribution is actually achieved and the less income inequality and poverty are reduced. The current paper provides a state-of-the-art review of empirical research into that para…
Recent advances in understanding welfare attitudes in Europe
Welfare attitudes are important for the social legitimacy of social policy. In European comparative social policy research, the scientific study of welfare attitudes is a well-settled discipline. In this chapter we identify six major advancements in attitudinal social policy research: (a) the multi-dimensionality of welfare attitudes; the role of contextual factors both as (b) contexts influencing welfare attitudes and as (c) factors in so-called…
Welfare state dissatisfaction and support for major welfare reform
This research note investigates how people combine their views on two radically opposing welfare reforms: a universal basic income and a fully means‐tested welfare state. Using data from the 2016–2017 European Social Survey, we found that support for transformative welfare reform is rooted in perceptions of the performance of the current system. The preferred direction of reform, however, strongly depends on the specific aspects of the welfare st…
The Popularity of Basic Income
A wave of support? A natural experiment on how the Covid-19 pandemic affected the popularity of a basic income
Although a basic income (BI) has already been widely debated, the COVID-19 crisis further intensified the discussion about this periodic cash payment that is unconditionally delivered to all. However, it remains unclear whether the crisis spurred a wave of public support for its introduction. To investigate this, we aim to answer two research questions: (1) How did support for a BI evolve in reaction to the COVID-19 crisis? and (2) To what extent…
Popularity of Basic Income
The multidimensionality of public support for basic income
sponsorship: This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under the Marie Sklodowska-Curie grant agreement No. 101023631. The research is also supported by the Research Foundation Flanders [grant number 11H2619N]. (European Union|101023631, Research Foundation Flanders|11H2619N, Marie Curie Actions (MSCA)|101023631
What's not to loathe? A qualitative study of the factors influencing Belgian trade unions’ positioning toward a universal basic income
This article focuses on the positioning of Belgian trade unions (TUs) toward a universal basic income (UBI). While there is some previous empirical work suggesting that TUs are unlikely to support this potential welfare reform because of ideological and strategic motives, we still lack a broader understanding of the factors influencing unions’ hostility toward a UBI. This study aims to fill this gap by adopting a multifactor approach that conside…
Settlement deservingness perceptions of climate change, economic, and political migrant groups across partisan lines
International migration is a prevailing issue of our times. With opponents of multicultural societies becoming more vocal across Europe, it is pivotal to strengthen our knowledge of how migrants are popularly perceived in receiving countries. Prior research suggests that there is remarkable agreement within different countries as to which types of migrants are seen as deserving of settlement, cutting across deep-rooted partisan divides. Building …
What makes social policy programs (un)popular? Disentangling the causal impact of policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery
Social policy scholars often argue that policy programs are more popular when they are universally accessible, targeted at deserving social risk groups, or provided in kind rather than in cash. I argue, however, that most existing evidence is inconclusive because it typically conflates the respective factors of programs’ policy design, risk group deservingness and mode of delivery. Using data from a factorial vignette experiment in Belgium and th…
It's the middle that matters? Income group coalitions in support of redistributive welfare reform
Many well‐established theories argue that welfare state policies create, and are created by, support coalitions between different income groups. Empirically, however, relatively little attention has been paid to the coalitions forged by the group that matters most according to these theories: middle‐income earners. To address that gap, this article investigates the income differences underlying popular support for two radically opposing redistrib…
Policy feedback and income targeting in the welfare state
In light of ongoing debates about income targeting in the welfare state, this article explores how the design and outcomes of income targeting policies are related to popular targeting preferences. Based on the unique combination of fine-grained opinion and policy indicators in a multilevel analysis, the results show that targeting preferences are indeed empirically related to targeting policies. However, whether these preferences are affected mo…
Social Policy and Reform Studies (19 works) · Economics (18 works) · Political science (18 works) · Law (15 works) · Politics (12 works) · Welfare (12 works) · Employment and Welfare Studies (11 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Law (10 works) · Public economics (10 works)